By the Shield
By the Shield is the presumed title for one of two books in the How To Be a Hero novel series based on QFG4. It was to focus on Falcon the Paladin and his adventures in Mordavia (or whatever the land would have been called in the finalised books). The short story Mistress of Darkness would have been adapted into it. Background Katrina and Ad Avis needed some gullible fool who would be able to get the rituals to call Avoozl for them. Ad Avis knew exactly who to use… It was decided that Falcon the Paladin was the weakest of the four heroes, and the least likely to pose a threat alone. They began the ritual of summoning for him, pulling him from Tarna. Leaving his siblings behind in shock. But Falcon was lost to the Dark One's Cave along the way. Katrina was indeed surprised and relieved to see the hero was still alive. She hated it when a magical spell went awry. Her magic had summoned the hero to Mordavia where the hero was supposed to arrive in the Borgov castle. Instead, the power of the Dark One's cave interfered. Falcon was either very lucky or very skilled to come out of that cave alive. Either way, Katrina knew that he would be very useful to her. For once, Ad Avis had given her good advice when he suggested that she summon his murderer there. This was not a matter of petty vengeance. This would have world-altering consequences. And Falcon seemed just gullible enough to do the job for which Katrina brought them there. She met him outside of the cave warned him to stay in the local village at night, because of dangers that roamed at night. He didn't listen to her suggestion however, and one night he left the village to explore putting himself into danger. This annoyed Katrina. She watched in her magic mirror as he was ambushed by a revenant ghoul in Mordavia's cemetery. She chose to travel to the cemetery to save him, and watched from the shadows as he fought and was injured by the creature, but showed no fear. Meanwhile, Falcon's siblings mounted a rescue, finding their own ways to Mordavia they reunited with their brother, and all worked to stop Katrina's and Ad Avis' plans. Katrina would end up turning on Ad Avis, in order to defend Falcon and his siblings. Allowing Ad Avis to destroy her. Notes Mordavia would be a great place to to put secondary focus on Owl because of the unique encounter with the Fairy Queen. Wren would also get some great content via the secret Thieves Guild. Hawk might get his first axe during this adventure. The above synopses is based on material from Lori Cole’s Facebook discussions, Mistress of Darkness, and Katrina’s backstory. See also *Mistress of Darkness *Katrina's Story *Women of Glory 4: Dark Mistress *Women of Glory 4: Daughter of Darkness *Shady Ladies of Shadows of Darkness Category:Apocrypha Category:Alternate Canon